Bobbysocks wrote:
".....
The 357th started out as a 39 unit and flew them in Tonopah. Because of that a lot of them thought they were going to the pacific. Reactions among the pilots varied...some ( not a heck of a lot tho ) liked the plane. Others like Obie OBrien were happy they never had to get behind the stick of one ever again..."
From:
357th FG Interview
"HOW WAS FLYING THE P-39?
I could write a book about this, but thank God someone else did. The book is "Nanette" by a man named Park. He, like me, thinks the damn thing had a soul. The P-39 was undoubtedly the worst airplane the Air Corps had in its inventory. But if a pilot could accumulate about 150 hours, he should be awarded a medal, as he is well on his way to being a fighter pilot. That particular airplane was absolutely unforgiving and aerodynamically unstable. It was so bad that many service pilots did not, or more likely, would not fly it. Tactical units had members sent to the manufacturers to fly P-39s to their units. I know this because I was one of the lucky ones who got to do this type of work."
And these were brand new planes... let's imagine with worn out Allisons, I think it could have been a nightmare.Italian pilots were not the only ones to hate P-39.
".....
The 357th started out as a 39 unit and flew them in Tonopah. Because of that a lot of them thought they were going to the pacific. Reactions among the pilots varied...some ( not a heck of a lot tho ) liked the plane. Others like Obie OBrien were happy they never had to get behind the stick of one ever again..."
From:
357th FG Interview
"HOW WAS FLYING THE P-39?
I could write a book about this, but thank God someone else did. The book is "Nanette" by a man named Park. He, like me, thinks the damn thing had a soul. The P-39 was undoubtedly the worst airplane the Air Corps had in its inventory. But if a pilot could accumulate about 150 hours, he should be awarded a medal, as he is well on his way to being a fighter pilot. That particular airplane was absolutely unforgiving and aerodynamically unstable. It was so bad that many service pilots did not, or more likely, would not fly it. Tactical units had members sent to the manufacturers to fly P-39s to their units. I know this because I was one of the lucky ones who got to do this type of work."
And these were brand new planes... let's imagine with worn out Allisons, I think it could have been a nightmare.Italian pilots were not the only ones to hate P-39.
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